


Flower Gleam and Glow

by Swimmergirl



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Tangled (2010) Fusion, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Fantasy, Fluff and Angst, How Do I Tag, Tangled (2010) References, Temporary Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-03
Updated: 2020-11-03
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:28:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,278
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27372697
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Swimmergirl/pseuds/Swimmergirl
Summary: Rantaro Amami didn’t panic. He was calm, collected, and didn’t let his emotions get the better of him.At least, that’s what he told himself as he approached the base of a looming tower.
Relationships: Akamatsu Kaede/Amami Rantaro
Comments: 3
Kudos: 16





	Flower Gleam and Glow

Rantaro Amami didn’t panic. He was calm, collected, and didn’t let his emotions get the better of him. 

At least, that’s what he told himself as he approached the base of a looming tower. 

The grove was well hidden, but he’d retraced the path he had taken the day before. He looked up the massive stone structure, trying to calm the erratic beating of his heart. 

“Kaede?!” He shouted up, praying for any response, please, please-

His prayers were answered as long, golden hair came flowing down from the window. Rantaro breathed a heavy sigh of relief as he grabbed on and began to ascend the tower. 

When he reached the top, he hopped through the window into the interior of the structure. He recalled the last time he was here, bound to a chair with the very same hair. 

“Kaede! I thought-“ the words died in his throat when he saw the girl. Kaede was chained to the wall, struggling at her bonds. She was gagged, looking at Rantaro with panicked eyes. 

“Kaede!” The boy ran over immediately, inspecting the chains despite Kaede’s muffled protests. She was shaking her head violently as he tried to find a way to free her. 

What he didn’t realize was that she was staring at a glistening metal object behind him. 

“There.” He untied her gag, the cloth dropping to the floor. “Now let’s- GAH!”

Kaede let out a blood-curdling scream as Rantaro flinched, a large crimson stain spreading across his clothes. He stumbled backwards before sinking to the floor, a smug woman standing over him as Kaede watched in horror. 

“Well, well, well.” Junko Enoshima’s smile was sickening. Her grin was twisted, and her eyes filled with malice. No one knew how old she really was. She had been using the flower’s magic for years and years to keep herself young. And she wasn’t about to let some street criminal take that away from her.

“Perfect. I was going to have to hunt you down, but it looks like the thief just couldn’t resist his prize. Now our secret will die with him, my flower. I’ll make sure no one ever finds you again.” She unchained Kaede, dragging her over to the secret stairwell. The girl screamed, kicking against her attacker and scrambling to get away. In her protests, she accidentally knocked over the large mirror, shattering it onto several pieces that slid across the floor. 

“No!” She ignored the tears in her eyes as she fought, Junko grunting as she tried to keep the girl bound. 

“Please! No, please, let me save him! Let me save him!” Her eyes met Junko’s, determination and pleading in them. 

“Kaede...” Rantaro weakly tried to object, but was cut off by a cough. 

“I-I’ll go with you.” Kaede offered. “You can do whatever you want with me. I won’t fight you ever again.”

Junko’s eyes widened, stopping their struggle for the time being as she listened to the terms. 

“Kaede, no-“ Rantaro winced, the act of talking becoming harder and harder. 

“We can go back to the way it was before. Just you and I, up in this tower. I won’t ever try to run away, you can have me for as long as you want.” Her gaze was firm. It held steady on Junko before she allowed it to flicker to Rantaro for just a moment. She swallowed hard before leveling her voice. 

“I promise.”

And Kaede never broke a promise. 

“Stop-“ this time, it wasn’t a single cough, but a fit of them. Kaede didn’t move, her eyes trained firmly on the awful, awful woman who held his life in her hands. 

“Just-“ she curled a fist in her long, blonde hair. The thing that had the power to heal him. “Just let me save him.”

Junko paused for a moment before that sickening smile grew even wider. 

“Hm... okay!” She let go of Kaede’s chain, allowing the girl to run over to Rantaro. She propped him up against a pillar, breathing heavily as she tried to assess his wound. 

“Taro!” She blinked back tears at the amount of red coming from his side. It was fine, this would be fine, she just had to-

“K-Kaede...” Rantaro coughed again, a bit of blood trailing from the corner of his mouth. 

“I’m sorry- I’m so sorry-Everything is gonna be okay. I promise.” She tried to give him a reassuring smile, but it came out strained. She pressed her hair against his side, taking a deep breath as she began to sing in a shaky voice. 

“Flower gleam and glow,”

“Kaede-“

“Let your power shine,”

“Kaede!”

She shut her eyes tighter, trying to block out the shouts of her own name. 

“Make the-“

“KAEDE!”

The sheer volume and force of it caused her to go silent, eyes opening to see a clearly pained a s weak Rantaro staring at her with intent eyes. 

“I can’t-“ he flinched in pain, causing Kaede to wince. “I cant let you do this...”

“And I can’t let you die.” Kaede felt the tears prick at her eyes again. 

“But-“ he was cut off by another series of coughs, the pain on his face causing Kaede’s chest to twist. 

“Shh, Shh. It’ll be alright.” She swallowed hard, taking his hand in hers and squeezing it a little. Rantaro blinked slowly before moving their interlaced hands upward, cupping the girl’s cheek. The act made a few tears finally slip down her face as she took a shaky breath in and continued to sing, not noticing the slight shifting of Rantaro’s other hand. 

“M-make the clocks reverse-”

“...Kaede?” This time, her name was said gently. She hiccuped a little, looking down at him as she leaned into his hand that was still resting on her cheek.

“Yeah?”

“I love you.” his voice was just above a whisper, green locked with purple. Her eyes blew wide, mouth falling open a little.

“Rant-”

*SLICE*

It all happened in an instant. Kaede’s hand flew to the back of her neck as she felt a massive weight drop from it. Rantaro’s hand fell weakly to his side, the mirror shard sliding across the floor as he let go of it. 

“W-what?” Her fingers twitched, met only with empty space where her hair should be. 

There was an agonized scream as Junko stumbled, rushing over to what remained of the hair. It was rapidly turning brown. She picked it up, holding it against herself, but it was useless. She rapidly began to age, her beauty melting away. In her desperation, she failed to notice the window ledge, tripping and falling outside of it. But by the time she hit the ground, there was nothing but dust.

“No... no no no no! It wasn’t- this isn’t-” Kaede’s fingertips brushed against her hair, it now cut to just above her shoulders. Rantaro coughed, a weak smile in his face despite the tears in his emerald eyes. 

“No-nononono Taro- Rantaro, you’re okay- you’re fine- you’re-”

She shook her head, bundling up the dark hair in hands and pressing it onto the wound. 

“You’re okay- Just- Just- She inhaled, squeezing her eyes tight to hide the sickening sight in front of her.

“Flowergleamandglowletyourpowershinemaketheclockesreversebringbackwhatoncewasminehealwhathasbeenhurtchangethefatesdesignsavewhathasbeenlostbringbackwhatoncewasminewhatoncewasmine!”

She cracked open her eyes to see Rantaro in the same state as before, the panic in her chest clawing its way up to her throat. “No!”

She closed her eyes again, willing this all to go away, just go away.

“Flowergleamandglowletyourpower-”

“Kaede.”

She swallowed hard, eyes opening as more tears spilled from them “Y-yeah?”

Rantaro gave her a soft smile, his eyes half lidded in the struggle to keep the open. 

“It’s okay.”

Kaede hiccuped, shaking her head. “I-I should be telling you that…”

Rantaro returned his hand to her cheek, clearly struggling to do so. He ran his thumb across her skin, wiping at one of the many tears rolling down her face. 

“Don’t go-” She choked on a sob as she pleaded. “Please don’t go…”

“I-” He blinked at her, the act causing a few drops of water to slip down his own cheeks. 

“No- you- you can’t leave me! You- you were my dream!” She clutched his hand in hers, as if that would somehow change the inevitable. “You ARE my dream.”

“But....that’s the beauty....of dreams, Kaede…” He inhaled unsteadily. It was clear that each word was a tremendous effort for the boy. “Once one... ends then you....you get to go... find... a new one…”

“No! No I- I don’t want a new one. I want- I want you.” Kaede squeezed his hand tighter. One of the first things she’d noticed when they held them for the first time was how warm they were. Even now, that hadn’t changed. 

Rantaro let out a breathy chuckle at her words, forcing a fond smile. “And you got me.”

“But what about your dream?! You- you still have to fulfill your dream!”

His response was soft, almost groggy. “I did.” 

Kaede furrowed eyebrows in confusion. “But… the money-”

“No.” Rantaro’s smile was bright, somehow, despite his struggle to keep his eyes from closing. 

“You were my dream, Kaede. You will always be... my dream.”

Kaede’s eyes widened, more tears escaping them at his words. She wasn’t the one bleeding and in pain, but she felt like she was in just as much agony. Before she could respond, Rantaro’s hand slipped from her cheek and landed against the ground. She gasped as his other hand went limp in hers. Those beautiful green eyes fluttered closed, the boy’s head gently falling to the side.

Kaede blinked, stunned for a moment as her mind struggled to catch up to the horrible, horrible sight in front of her. 

“No- No, RANTARO!” She finally snapped, her vocal cords straining on the last word as she scanned his form for any twitch, the rise and fall of his chest, anything that contradicted the terrible conclusion she was forced to come to.

Nothing. Silence.  
Kaede’s arms curled around her stomach, the girl clutching herself tightly as she let out a pained, raw scream that could probably be heard across the forest. In desperation, she buried her face in Rantaro’s moving chest, her tears soaking through the fabric of his shirt. She wasn’t sure why, but her scratchy voice began to hum without her consent. 

“F-flower gleam and glow…”

_________

_”Who… who are you?”_

_Kaede stood in the shadows, her prisoner bound to a chair with her own hair as restraints. The girl had watched him, waiting for him to wake up. And here he was, a real, human person in her tower._

_________

“Let your power shine…”

_________

_”Oh, no. I don’t sing.”_

_Rantaro’s eyes widened as a series of blades were suddenly pointed at his throat. The boy swallowed hard as the piano started up again._

_________

“Make the clock reverse…”

_________

_Kaede gasped, the water approaching their necks. She bit back tears. This was all her fault, not only did she get herself killed, but Rantaro as well._

_“I’m so sorry, Rantaro.” She muttered, her throat closing up in shame. “It’s all my fault… you’ll never see your sisters again…”_

_“...Twelve, actually.”_

_“Huh?”_

_“I have twelve sisters.” Rantaro blew out a long breath, running a hand through his drenched hair. “You might as well know.”_

_________

“Bring back what once was mine…”  
_________ 

_Kaede’s eyes traveled across the night sky, their boat rocking slightly on the water._

_“You okay?”_

_Kaede sighed, the worry on her face must have been evident._

_“I've been looking out the window for eighteen years. Dreaming about what it would feel like when those lights rise in the sky. What if it's not everything that I dreamed it would be?”_

_“It will be.” He assured her._

_“And what if it is?” Kaede turned to him, leaning back from the edge of the boat. “What then?”_

_“Well that's the good part, I guess.” He shrugged, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly into a smile. “You get to go find a new dream.”_

_________

“What once was... mine.”

Kaede kept her face hidden from the world, praying for all this to go away, and that she would wake up from this nightmare…

She didn’t even notice as a soft yellow light began to emanate from Rantaro’s wound. Only when it spread to his chest did she lift her head, staring in teary-eyed shock. The light glowed and swirled together, creating a series of intricate patterns before they died down back to darkness. She waited, blinking in awe before…

“Ngh…” Rantaro stirred slightly, eyes cracking open as he shifted a bit. They met hers, his brow furrowing in confusion. “Kaede..?” 

“...Rantaro?”

He sat up a bit, groaning as he tried to force a smile, the realization dawning on him.

“Brown hair suits you.”

“Rantaro!” Kaede fell forward, wrapping her arms around him as more tears fell from her eyes. He hugged her back tightly before a sharp pain erupted in his arm.

“Never. Die. On me. Again!” Kaede sniffled, lightly slugging him in the arm with each word. The boy chuckled despite having to hold back a wince. 

“Okay, okay, deal.” He conceded, Kaede pulling back a bit to rub at her eyes. She gave him a small pout, her cheeks puffing up a bit despite the redness of her eyes. All of a sudden, she leaned forward, placing her hand on the back of his head as she shoved her mouth against his. Rantaro’s eyes widened for a moment before he relaxed into the kiss, the two of them finally happy together.

And he had a feeling they would live happily ever after.

**Author's Note:**

> Self-Indulgent Tangled AU that came to me in a vision and wouldn't leave until I wrote this. Do I like it? Not that much but I do love me some Disney and angst.


End file.
